GB2576581A

GB2576581A - A folding device for number plate holder on bicycle rack

Info

Publication number: GB2576581A
Application number: GB1816157.0A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Sanchez-Lafuente Ayala Francisco
Original assignee: Hermanos Sanchez Lafuente SA
Current assignee: Hermanos Sanchez Lafuente SA
Priority date: 2018-08-22
Filing date: 2018-10-03
Publication date: 2020-02-26
Also published as: ES1221394Y; FR3085138B3; FR3085138A3; DE202018105396U1; ES1221394U; NL2021586B1; PL127600U1; PL72407Y1; BE1026014B1; PT11804U

Abstract

A device is described for folding down of a number plate holder 1 on a load carrier such as a bicycle carrier, of the type which can be attached to a ball coupling integrated in the bodywork of a motor vehicle, and consisting of a platform for supporting the wheels of bicycles comprising two sections associated with respective arms 2, 3 which are foldable in relation to the longitudinal axis of a support structure 5 between an extended position of use and a folded storage position. The number plate holder is connected to one of the arms by means of a pivot shaft 4 on a first bracket 6, and may have two clip-type couplings 8, 10 on its rear surface, in such positions that they can be attached with a latch catch 9 on a second bracket 7 included on the other foldable arm in both extended and folded positions, such that number plate holder is urged against the second bracket in use. An alternative embodiment includes a gas shock absorber (12, figure 4) located on the rear face of the number plate holder instead of the couplings.

Description

“A FOLDING DEVICE FOR NUMBER PLATE HOLDER ON BICYCLE RACK”

DESCRIPTION

Technical field of the invention

The present invention concerns a folding device for a number plate holder on a bicycle rack, In particular for a mountable and removable bicycle rack on an attachment incorporated onto a motor vehicle, in particular an attachment placed on the rear of the motor vehicle in its axial longitudinal direction and that generally comprise an angled arm topped with a ball.

The technical field in which the present invention is registered Is included within the industrial sector dedicated to the design and construction of trailed devices and systems, or load carriers.

Background of the invention

The use of load-carrying devices specifically designed for transporting bicycles and the like, prepared and adapted for mounting/removal via ball couplings incorporated onto motor vehicles, and comprising an angled arm with a first, generally horizontal, section prepared for attachment to a support base which is integral with the chassis of the motor vehicle, and a second section, generally vertical, topped with a ball of a larger diameter than the arm, is generally known. The bicycle rack, on the other hand, generally comprises a platform made up of mutually folding sections, i.e. pivotable in relation to a central longitudinal axis, which in the position of use are unfolded to provide support surfaces for the wheels of bicycles or similar, and which when not in use can be folded for easier transport and occupy less space.

Since these load-carrying devices are designed, as stated above, to be attached to the rear of a motor vehicle, they must be fitted with a number plate for vehicle identification, as required, since in their position of use they normally obstruct the number plate fitted to the rear of the bodywork of the motor vehicle and prevent it from being identified. For this purpose, the load-carrying device includes a holder to which the number plate Is attached and fixed.

However, the number plate must be positioned horizontally when the bicycle rack is not being used. When the device is folded for ease of use and to take up less space, it is advisable that the number plate holder can also be moved into a folding position so that it can be positioned adjacent to the section(s) that make up the wheel support platform of the bicycle(s) being transported.

Multiple folding systems, either automatic or manual, have been designed to bring the number plate to the desired position both in use and during periods of non-use of the bicycle rack. Current systems generally fulfil the function for which they were designed, although in terms of manual folding systems, there could be a more simplified device; which is easy to build and assemble, economical to manufacture, and which provides safety guarantees for the positional maintenance of the number plate holder on bicycle racks both when being used and when folded up.

Brief description of the invention

The object of the present invention is the design of a folding device for a number plate holder on a bicycle rack and the like, to adjust such holder manually from its position when in use to its folded position and vice versa, which meets the currently desirable requirements for this type of device.

According to the invention, there is provided a folding device for a number plate holder on a bicycle rack, in particular for a load carrier which is carried by means of a motor vehicle to which it is attached by means of a ball coupling incorporated onto the rear of the motor vehicle, where the load carrier has support sections for the wheels of the bicycle(s) incorporated in arms mutually pivoted about a central longitudinal axis of the structure, characterised in that:

• a number plate holder (1) is attached near a first end of the holder (1) by means of a rotational axis (4) to a bracket (6) connected to one (2) of the arms, in that • the second bracket is provided on the other (3) of the arms for abutment of number plate holder against in its use position and in that • means is provided for urging the number plate holder against the second bracket in its use position.

Preferably, • the bracket (6) extends from the one arm and is bent at right angles for rotational connection of the number plate holder, and • the urging means comprises:

o a catch part on the rear surface of the number plate holder (1), o a clip-on coupling in a position close to a second end opposite the rotating first end, facing a second bracket (7) also bent at right angles and solid with a second one (3) of the arms, and o a complementary catch part adapted to be coupled with the catch part on the rear surface of the holder (1), when the device is arranged with the holder (1) in a horizontal position.

Further preferably, • the catch part on the number plate holder is a quick-release latch catch body (8) and • the complementary catch part is a latch catch stud (9) adapted to be coupled with the latch catch body (8) by quick coupling.

In a first version of the folding device, the number plate holder support is connected to one of the folding arms or sections, which can be rotated by means of a rotational axis and fixed to the second folding section, in the position for use, by means of a first removable coupling element, for example a latch catch or clip-on coupling orsnap-on coupling with a latch catch stud or similar of the second folding section. In addition, the number plate holder has a second means of removable coupling, as well as a preferred clip-on coupling, located In a position that, in the case of a folded bicycle rack, with both adjacent sections arranged vertically, and once the number plate holder has been manually swivelled to the vertical position, the second removable means of coupling is positioned in front of the same or similar latch catch of the second folding section, thereby allowing the coupling between the clip-on coupling and the latch catch to keep the number plate in the vertical position alongside the two mutually folding sections.

Alternatively, • the number plate holder (1) which pivots via a rotational axis (4) that is integral with a bracket (6) bent at right angles and attached to the structure of the device, located at the first end of said holder, and • the urging means includes a gas shock absorber (12), extended across the rear surface of the holder (1), for the purpose of keeping the number plate in a horizontal position during use, with limited rotation by means of a top flange (1a) which stops against a second bracket (7) also bent at right angles and in a vertical position when the device is folded up.

In a second version of the folding device, the number plate holder is attached to one of the sections of the bicycle wheel support platform or similar by means of a pivot shaft near one end, while at the rear plate holder it includes an extendible/retractable means such as a gas shock absorber or similar extended between the pivot point and a position near the opposite end, which, during use, keeps the holder extended horizontally with the help of an upper flange supported against a stop plate of the other section, and which, during folding, acts by itself after a certain amount of manual rotation, keeping the number plate in a vertical position until the user wishes to return it manually to its position for use.

Brief description ofthe drawings

These and other characteristics and advantages of the invention will be more obvious from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, provided only by way of non-limiting illustration with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 shows schematic views (a, b), in perspective, of a first version of the device for folding a number plate holder according to the invention in the horizontal position of use, seen from the front and the rear, together with a larger-scale D1 detail;

Figure 2 shows schematic views (a, b), in perspective, of the same device for folding a number plate holder as in Figure 1, with the number plate holder in the folded position (i.e. in the vertical position of non-use), together with a larger-scale D2 detail;

Figures 3a and 3b show illustrative schematic views of the application and use of a folding device according to the invention on a load carrying element such as a bicycle rack;

Figure 4 shows schematic views (a, b), in perspective, on the front and rear, respectively, of a second version of a device for manually folding a number plate holder on a bicycle rack or similar according to the invention, and

Figure 5 (a, b) and Figure 6 (a, b) show schematic views, in perspective, of the front and rear, respectively, of the folding device in Figure 4, illustrative of the manual folding process of the number plate holder version shown in Figure 4.

Description of a preferred embodiment

Referring now to the drawings, it can be seen that Figure 1 comprises two views marked as (a) and (b), which represent the manual number plate folding device for load carriers, specifically for bicycle racks and the like, according to a first version of the invention, viewed respectively from a front and a rear position. The figure shows that a number plate holder 1 is positioned horizontally with respect to two folding arms 2, 3 intended to support the respective sections of a load support platform (not shown for reasons of clarity), these arms being 2, 3 foldable in relation to the rigid structure 5 constituting the frame of the device, with the number plate holder 1 pivotally attached to one of the arms, e.g. folding arm 2, by means of a pivot shaft indicated by reference 4 and located in a position close to one of the ends of this number plate holder. The rotational axis 4 is joined to a first metal bracket 6 of reduced width, bent at right angles, while at the opposite end there is a second bracket 7, of the same characteristics and also bent at right angles that acts as a stop for a latch catch body 8, having a snap-on clip and attached to the rear surface of the number plate holder 1 in a position close to the first end, which helps to keep the number plate holder 1 in its horizontal position (operating position) with a latch catch stud 9 attached to the stop bracket 7. Similarly, the number plate holder 1 includes a second latch catch body 10, located in a position close to the end in a pre-established position, which is intended to keep the number plate holder 1 in the vertical position when the device is folded, i.e. in the storage position. This arrangement may be best appreciated in the larger scale view included in detail D1.

As will be understood from Figure 1 above, the position of use is that shown in both views (a) and (b), with the number plate holder 1 extended horizontally and with the latch catch body 8 attached to the latch catch stud 9 in order to immobilise it. However, when the device Is not in use and it folds down taking up less space, the arms 2, 3 are folded upwards to occupy a vertical position (Figure 2), for which purpose the number plate holder 1 swivels with respect to the rotational axis 4, as indicated by arrow F1 in Figure 1(a). When the number plate holder 1 is positioned completely folded down, this holder is positioned vertically as shown in Figure 2(a), in a position adjacent to the folding arms 2, 3, and is fixed in this position with the second latch catch body 10 being applied to the same alreadymentioned latch catch stud 9, since now the latch catch stud 9 and the second latch catch body 10 are In opposed positions. This form of collaborative linking between the restraints provided by the latch catch body 10 and the latch catch stud 9, better visible in detail 2 of Figure 2, helps to keep the whole device folded, until the user decides to repeat the operations in reverse order to bring the device back to its operating position in Figure 1.

Figures 3a and 3b are simple illustrations of how to use the device of the invention. As shown in these Figures, the use of a bicycle rack indicated by reference number 11 in which the folding device assembly proposed for the invention has been mounted is done in the conventional manner. Figure 3a is a view of the device in the position of use, in which the positions of the rotational axis 4 and the latch catch bodys 8, 10 have been marked, while Figure 3b shows the same bicycle rack as in Figure 3a, folded, with the number plate holder 1 in the vertical position, and in which the positions of the rotational axis 4 and the latch catch bodys 8,10 have been marked again in their respective positions to keep the holder 1 folded in the vertical position.

Referring now to Figure 4, representations (a) and (b), an alternative version of the embodiment of the folding device proposed by the present invention has been shown. In this case, the starting point is a structure similar to the one described above, in which a number plate holder 1 is associated with arms 2, 3 which are foldable with respect to a structure 5 which is integral with the motor vehicle chassis, and susceptible to pivoting with respect to a rotational axis 4 which is integral with a right-angled bent bracket 6 located at the rear of the number plate holder 1, at one of the ends of number plate holder 1. At the top, the holder 1 includes a flange 1a extended to the entire upper edge of the number plate holder 1, which is a stop for the number plate holder 1 when in the operating position, while at the bottom it includes a second flange (not visible in the Figure), of the same type as the upper one. Additionally, the holder 1 has a wide opening 11 positioned centrally, next to the top edge (as per the position in Figure 4(a)).

In accordance with the invention, the element aimed at keeping the number plate holder 1 in the horizontal operating position and in the folding or vertical folding position consists of a small gas shock absorber which is clearly visible in the representation in Figure 4b, in which it is indicated with numerical reference number 12, and which, as can be seen, is located adjacent to the rear surface of holder 1. In the operating position of Figure 4, the thrust action exerted by the gas shock absorber 12 keeps the holder supported with its upper flange 1a against the stop bracket 7, thus preventing the number plate from changing its position by itself. However, when the number plate holder 1 needs to be moved to the folded position, i.e. to the vertical position of the drawing (non-operating condition), a sequence is performed that is extremely simple and quick to carry out. This sequence is shown graphically in Figures 5 and 6, and consists, as indicated by arrow F2 in Figure 4, by pivoting the number plate holder 1 with respect to the rotational axis 4 until it is also horizontal but inverted with respect to its position of use (Figure 5(a)), supported by its corresponding flange on the corresponding folding arm depending on the direction of rotation (in the example shown in the Figures, on the folding arm 2). Once in this position, the corresponding arm (arm 2 in Figures) simply needs to be folded down to bring the holder 1 to the vertical position (i.e. to the non-operating condition), along with the arm. This operation is shown in a clearly visible way in Figure 6 of the drawings

Industrial applicability

As can be seen from the above description of a preferred embodiment, the invention is particularly applicable in the industrial sector for the construction of equipment and systems intended for the transport of loads, specifically bicycles and the like, carried by motor vehicles.

It is not deemed necessary to further extend the content of the present description for a person skilled in the art to understand its scope and the advantages derived therefrom, in addition to carrying out the practical embodiment of its object. Notwithstanding the foregoing, experts in the field may understand and determine that within the essentiality of the invention multiple variations of detail may be introduced, which may affect shapes, dimensions and sizes, without drifting from the scope of the invention as defined by the attached claims.

Claims

1. - A folding device for a number plate holder (1) on a bicycle rack, in particular for a load carrier which is carried by means of a motor vehicle to which it is attached by means of a ball coupling incorporated onto the rear of the motor vehicle, where the load carrier has support sections for the wheels of the bicycle(s) incorporated in arms (2, 3) mutually pivoted about a central longitudinal axis of the structure, characterised in that:

2. - A device according to claim 1, characterised in that:

• the bracket (6) extends from the one arm and is bent at right angles for rotational connection of the number plate holder, in that • the urging means comprises:

3. - A device according to claim 2, characterised in that:

• the catch part on the number plate holder is a quick-release latch catch body (8) and in that • the complementary catch part is a latch catch stud (9) adapted to be coupled with the latch catch body (8) by quick coupling.

4.- Device according to claim 2 or claim 3, characterised in that the holder (1) also includes a second latch catch part, located in a predetermined position close to the first end, so that when the device is not being used and both the support sections are folded together with the arms (2, 3) folded up, the number plate holder (1) is also capable of adopting an upright position, adjacent to the arms (2, 3), and held in that position by interlocking the 5 second latch part (10) with the complementary catch part (9).

5.- Device according to claim 1, characterised in that:

• the number plate holder (1) which pivots via a rotational axis (4) that is integral with a bracket (6) bent at right angles and attached to the structure of the device, located at

10 the first end of said holder, and in that • the urging means includes a gas shock absorber (12), extended across the rear surface of the holder (1), for the purpose of keeping the number plate in a horizontal position during use, with limited rotation by means of a top flange (1a) which stops against a second bracket (7) also bent at right angles and in a vertical position when

15 the device is folded up.